Posted on January, 14, 2019 at 09:11 am
TANZANIA’S intra trade with the East African Community (EAC) declined by 8.7 percent to 667.3 million US dollars in 2017 due to contraction in imports, notably manufacturing products associated with expansion domestic industries.
According to the Bank of Tanzania (BoT) annual report 2017/18, Tanzania’s major exports to the EAC region were beans, maize grain, sisal rope, tea and mosquito nets. Major imports include medicine, soap, chewing gum, salt, margarine, gas oil and crown corks.
Exports to Kenya declined by 7.1 percent to 291.5 million US dollars while imports declined by 24.8 percent to 201.3 million US dollars. Exports to Uganda decreased by 52.7 percent to 27.5 million US dollars, while imports increased by 11.2 to 34.1 million US dollars.
Exports to Rwanda increased by 14.1 per cent to 60.5 million US dollars in 2017 while imports declined by 0.5 per cent1.3 million US dollars.
Tanzania was a net exporter to other EAC countries, with a trade surplus of 193.3 million US dollars in 2017 compared with a surplus of 130.3 million US dollars in the preceding year. Kenya continued to dominate the Tanzania’s intra-EAC trade, accounting for 73.8 percent.
During the year under review, the leading destination of Tanzania’s intra-EAC exports was Kenya though its share declined to 67.7 percent from 72.9 percent in 2016. The share of Tanzania’s exports to Uganda also declined to 6.4 percent in 2017 from 13.5 percent.
Kenya remained the major source of Tanzania’s intra-EAC imports, accounting for 84.9 percent in 2017 compared with 89.1 percent in the preceding year.
Meanwhile, Tanzania has remained the net exporter to the Southern African Development Community (SADC) countries after recording a trade surplus of 445.5 million US dollars in 2017, up from 397.2 million US dollars in 2016.
Tanzania’s major exports to the SADC region were gold, cigarettes, wheat flour, juice, ceramic, fish, glass, cement, soap, footwear, and bricks, while major imports, were motor vehicles, maize seeds, gas, iron sheet, lubricants, beer, apples and sugar. Specifically, Tanzania recorded a trade surplus with South Africa, DRC, Malawi, Mozambique, Zimbabwe,
Angola and Botswana.
South Africa remained the major trading partner of Tanzania accounting for 70.9 percent of the total Tanzania’s intra- SADC trade. In 2017, Tanzania’s exports to South Africa increased by 10.7 percent to 699.8 million US dollars while imports declined by 12.1 percent to 415.2
million US dollars.
South Africa remained the leading destination of Tanzania’s intra-SADC exports with its share increasing to 69.4 percent in 2017 from 62.3 percent in 2016.
On imports, South Africa continued to be the major intra-SADC source market for imports, accounted for 73.7 percent, followed by Zambia with 9.5 percent.
DRC is the second Tanzania’s intra-SADC trade partner with export value amounting to 153.6 million US dollars in 2017 and imports, 1.0 million US dollars.
However, the share of Tanzania’s exports to DRC declined to 15.2 percent in 2017 compared with 28.8 percent in 2016.
Source: Daily News